Pan-Seared Pork Medallions

Pan-Seared Pork Medallions delivers tender pork tenderloin medallions that develop a beautiful golden crust in minutes, then get finished with a rich Dijon pan sauce. This restaurant-quality dish delivers impressive flavor with simple technique, making it perfect for busy weeknights or special dinners. Cutting the tenderloin into medallions and then pounding each one to an even 2cm thickness accomplishes two things at once: it produces individually portioned pieces that cook quickly and consistently, and it ensures every medallion reaches doneness at the same moment rather than some finishing before others due to uneven thickness. The light flour dusting is deliberately thin — enough to encourage browning and give the pan sauce something to cling to and slightly thicken against, without building a heavy, bready coating. The pan sauce itself is built directly from the fond left behind by searing, meaning none of that concentrated flavor goes to waste; deglazing with stock and wine, then finishing with Dijon mustard, produces a sauce with real depth built in just minutes. The result is a dish that delivers genuine restaurant-quality flavor for a remarkably fast total time.

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 12

Total Time 27

Servings: 4

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: French

Calories: 340

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

For the Pork

700 g pork tenderloin
8 g fine sea salt
4 g freshly ground black pepper
30 g all-purpose flour
30 ml olive oil

For the Pan Sauce

40 g unsalted butter
125 ml chicken stock
60 ml white wine
15 ml Dijon mustard
20 g fresh parsley chopped

Method

Prepare the Medallions

Trim any silver skin from the pork tenderloin. Cut crosswise into 3cm thick medallions. Place each medallion between plastic wrap and gently pound to 2cm thickness for even cooking.

Season and Coat

Season the medallions generously with 8g salt and 4g black pepper. Dust lightly with 30g flour, shaking off any excess to ensure a light coating.

Sear the Pork

Heat 30ml olive oil in a large skillet over high heat until shimmering. Add medallions in a single layer without overcrowding. Sear for 3 minutes until golden brown.

Cook Through

Flip the medallions and cook another 3 minutes until just cooked through to 63°C internal temperature. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil.

Build the Pan Sauce

Reduce heat to medium. Add 40g butter to the pan. Once melted, pour in 125ml chicken stock and 60ml white wine, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Reduce and Finish

Simmer the sauce for 3 minutes until reduced by half and slightly thickened. Whisk in 15ml Dijon mustard until smooth.

Serve

Return medallions to the pan briefly to coat with sauce. Transfer to serving plates, spoon remaining sauce over top, and garnish with 20g chopped fresh parsley. Serve immediately.

Notes

Pounding each medallion to an even 2cm thickness after slicing is what makes this dish cook so predictably and quickly. Without that step, medallions cut from different parts of the tenderloin — which naturally tapers — would vary in thickness and finish cooking at different times, leaving some overdone while others lag behind.

The light flour dusting serves a specific dual purpose: it promotes more even, consistent browning during the sear, and the small amount of residual flour left on the meat's surface helps very slightly thicken the pan sauce once the medallions are returned to coat in it.

Scraping up the fond during deglazing is not a cosmetic step — that browned residue left in the pan from searing is concentrated flavor, and incorporating it into the sauce is specifically what gives a quick pan sauce like this one genuine depth in just a few minutes, rather than tasting thin or one-dimensional.